Photo by Mary Scott McNabb
ZAXBY’S HEART OF DALLAS BOWL
North Texas (5-7) vs. Army (6-5)
December 27, 11 a.m. (ESPN)
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About North Texas
The Mean Green qualified for a bowl game with a 5-7 record thanks to the highest Academic Progress Rate out of the five-win teams. It was head coach Seth Littrell’s first year as the program’s head coach and the bowl berth represents progress and opportunity for North Texas. There might be too many bowl games but programs like North Texas wouldn’t agree. Reaching a bowl game means extra practices and a jump-start on the 2017 season.
North Texas leaned heavily on freshman quarterback Mason Fine down the stretch before an injury forced Alec Morris to start the final game of the year – a loss to UTEP. Fine played in 10 games, completing nearly 60 percent of his passes for 1,572 yards and six touchdowns to five interceptions. No matter which quarterback starts against Army, North Texas will lean on running back Jeffery Wilson. He averaged 5.7 yards a rush and scored 13 touchdowns on 149 attempts.
North Texas’ defense must improve on the ground to beat Army. The Mean Green allowed opponents to average 5.1 yards per carry and the leading tackler is a member of the secondary. Teams averaged 32.2 points per game against North Texas this season.
About Army
At the time of this article, Army still had a contest against Navy before ending the regular season. The Black Knights qualified for their first bowl game in six years. Army was 6-18 in head coach Jeff Monken’s first two seasons at the helm. It’s been a long road back for Army. The program has reached three bowl games since 1988 and had a losing record in all but one season this century.
Army runs a triple-option that relies heavily on quarterback Ahmad Bradshaw. The Black Knights average 328.7 yards per game and Bradshaw is second on the team with 644 yards rushing on the season. Andy Davidson leads the team with 818. Nine Army rushers gained at least 150 yards this season. The passing attack keeps defenses honest, or at least that’s the goal. Bradshaw threw the ball 84 times this year.
Andrew King and Jeremy Timpf lead the team with 88 tackles each. The two combined for 20 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. Alex Aukerman leads the team with 5.5 sacks and Kenneth Brinson is second with four. Army allows 19 points per game and opponents average just 3.9 yards per rush.
Players to watch
Willy Ivery (North Texas) – Defenses key on Wilson and this makes Ivery the wildcard out of the backfield. He’s the prototypical change-of-pace running back with big-play ability as a runner and out of the backfield as a receiver. He finished the year with 490 yards rushing and 25 receptions.
Andy Davidson (Army) – The triple-option is predicated on the inside run. The first-option is the best option and Davidson becomes that first option on nearly every rushing down from his position behind the quarterback. He’s a bruising runner who rarely goes backwards. He only lost three yards all year on 150 carries.
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Mike Craven is a senior writer for Dave Campbell’s Texas Football. He covers college, high schools and recruiting, and even dabbles in some NFL. He’s a UTSA Insider and runs BirdsUp.com for Rivals. Find him on Twitter: @CravenMike.
Are you a Texas football fan hoping to attend your favorite team’s bowl game, or simply catch the nearest one nearby? Get your tickets below:
Texas Bowl: Texas A&M vs. Kansas State
Cactus Bowl: Baylor vs. Boise State
Liberty Bowl: TCU vs. Georgia
Heart of Dallas Bowl: Army vs. North Texas
Las Vegas Bowl: Houston vs. San Diego State
New Mexico Bowl: UTSA vs. New Mexico
Cotton Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Western Michigan
Sun Bowl: Stanford vs. North Carolina
Alamo Bowl: Oklahoma State vs. Colorado
Armed Forces Bowl: Navy vs. Louisiana Tech
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